Fire control apparatus



Nov 1, 1949. c. J. GROSS FIRE CONTROL APPARATUS 7 Sheets-Sheet 1 FiledMarch 5, 1945 s r G J 8 Vk P mm C Nov 1, 1949.

C. J. GROSS FIRE CONTROL APPARATUS 7 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 3, 1945[rave nior Charles c/Grosa B h's Aizforney Nov 1, 1949. c. J. GROSS2,486,526

FIRE. CONTROL APPARATUS Filed March a, 1945 v Shee'ts-Sheet s Chcz rZese1 Gross .Nov 1 1949. c. J. GROSS 2,486,526

FIRE CONTROL APPARATUS Filed March 3, 1945 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 N31! 0 a .p202 Z f;

I (I \I g:- R J 1 2m j 2w 0 m 2/4 '1) lnvenio'r 72 Charles JG-ross By hiA1575 orney (3. J. GROSS FIRE CONTROL APPARATUS Nov 1, 1949.

7 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 3, 1945 In ve nfor Charles JGroaJ ifSfiorne Nov 1, 1949. -c. J. GROSS 2,486,526

FIRE CONTROL APPARATUS Filed March 3, 1945 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 FIRE CONTROLAPPARATUS Filed March 3, 1945 '7 Sheets-Sheet 7 lm enfor r 7-45 M; acharzescfur'osa & 1 W A32 Patented Nov. 1, 194

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE FIRE CONTROL APPARATUS Application March 3,1945, Serial No. 580,836

3 Claims. (Cl. 89-134) This invention relates to apparatus for thecontrol of gun fire, and more particularly to apparatus for interruptingthe fire of automatic weapons such as machine guns. The invention isillustrated herein as embodied in a gun mount or turret of the type inwhich one or more guns, such as antiaircraft machine guns, are rotatedabout a vertical and ahorizontal axis, commonly known as training ortraverse and elevation, by a gunner who moves with the guns in train andtracks the targets, controls the movements of the guns in alldirections, and fires the guns from a control station located at a pointremote from the breech ends of the guns. While the illustrativeembodiment of the invention is especially adapted to be installed onshipboard, or any other movable or stationary supporting structure, andto be used for operating a pair of parallel antiaircraft machine guns,it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in itsapplicability to any particular type of mount or gun, nor to the numberof guns which may be carried by the mount.

Among the desirable features of gun mounts used against rapidly movingtargets, such as aircraft, are the ease and rapidity with which thegunner can train the guns on the target and the rapidity with which hecan fire the guns. Accordingly, antiaircrait gun mounts used on such warcraft as naval vessels, for example, are ordinarily installed on weatherdecks, where the guns can be moved through their maximum angles of trainand elevation and with minimum interference from the ships structure.However, it is not always possible to insure with absolute certaintyagainst the danger that some parts of the ships structure or otherobjects which might come within the range of fire will be hit during thefiring of automatic guns unless the gunner is sufliciently alert tointerrupt the firing in certain areas. This places an additional strainupon the gunner, who is otherwise preoccupied during action againstrapidly moving aircraft.

It is an object of the present invention to provide, in an antiaircraftgun mount of the type described above, having gun training and elevatingmechanisms and firing means comprising a firing pedal connected to guntrigger operating mechanism for actuating the latter, apparatus whichwill automatically and without the intervention of the gunner render thefiring means inoperative to actuate the trigger operating mechanism inpredetermined positions of train and elevation of the guns, thereby tointerrupt the firing while the guns are moved through certain areasdesignated beforehand as safe (i. e. no fire) areas without, however,interrupting the normal operation of the mount, and which will permitthe resumption of firing after the guns have been moved past the safearea.

With this object in view and in accordance with one feature of theinvention, the fire control apparatus for automatically interrupting thefiring of the guns comprises means associated with the gun trainingmechanism and with the trigger operating means and actuated inpredetermined positions of the guns in train to disconnect the triggeroperating means from the firing means", thereby to render the firingmeans inoperative to actuate the trigger operating means while the gunsare being rotated through predetermined angles of train corresponding tothe designated areas it is desired to protect. As herein illustrated,there is provided a cam secured to a fixed base of the mount, and ayieldable cam follower mounted for rotation circumferentially of the camin a base housing mounted for rotation relatively to the fixed base, therotatable base having standards secured thereto, each of which isadapted to support a cradle for one or more guns, so that the guns arerotated in a horizontal plane relatively to the fixed base of the mount.The cam is provided with high and low portions, corresponding topredetermined safe and fire areas, and the cam follower is connected toa pivotally mounted pawl, hereinafter referred to as the cam-operatedpawl, forming part of the connection between the firing means and thetrigger operating means, this pawl being normally in engagement withanother pivotally mounted pawl, hereinafter referred to as the manuallyoperated pawl, also forming part of the previously mentioned connectionbetween the firing means and the trigger operating means.

The arrangement is such that, during the operation of the mount to movethe guns in train, the

cam follower rotates relatively to the cam in such manner that, whilethe cam follower is in engagement with a low portion of the camcorresponding to the fire zone, the two pawls are in engagement witheach other and the trigger operating means will be actuated to fire theguns when the firing pedal is actuated. However, as soon as the camfollower engages an elevated portion of the cam, it actuates thecam-operated pawl to cause it to swing in a direction to disengage itfrom the manually operated pawl, thereby breaking the connection betweenthe firing means and the trigger operating means so that actuation ofthe firing pedal by the operator will be ineffective to fire the gunsuntil the guns have been rotated through an arc corresponding to thepredetermined safe or no fire area, as defined by the extent of theelevated portion of the cam. After passing this area, the cam followeragain engages a low portion of the cam, causing the cam-operated pawl toswing in the reverse direction to a position in which, upon release ofthe firing pedal bythe operator, the two pawls will again be broughtinto cooperative relation to permit resumption of the firing when theoperator again depresses the firing pedal.

In accordance with another feature of the invention, there is providedmeans associated also with the gun elevating mechanism and cooperat ingwith the above-mentioned cam follower to interrupt the firing inpredetermined positions during the movement of the guns in elevation. Asherein illustrated, the cam follower is carried by a rack slide mountedfor reciprocating movement radially of the surface of the cam, the rackslide being actuated by a gear having a driving connection with one ofthe elevating gear segments secured to each gun cradle. The arrangementis such that, during the rotation of the guns in elevation, the camfollower is moved radially of the cam in such manner that, while the camfollower is in engagement with a depression of the cam, the guns can befired. However, as soon as the cam follower engages an elevated portionof the cam, the previously mentioned cam-operated pawl is actuated toswing in a direction to disengage it from the manually operated pawl, asexplained above, thereby to disconnect the firing means from the triggeroperating means and to interrupt the firing until the guns have beenmoved past the no fire area as defined by the extent of the elevatedportion of the cam, whereupon the cam follower rides off the elevatedportion of the cam and the pawls are again brought into cooperativerelation to permit resumption of the firing of the guns in the mannerdescribed above.

In order to provide against accidental firing of the guns when the mountis not in use, or until such time during the operation of the mount asthe gunner may be ready to commence firing, there is provided, inaccordance with a further feature of the invention, manually controlledsafety means whereby the firing means may be disconnected from thetrigger operating means so that the guns can not be fired by accidentalactuation of the firing pedal. As herein illustrated, the manuallycontrolled safety means comprises a hand lever connected by linkage tothe firing means and movable between two positions corresponding to thesafe and "fire positions to actuate the manually operated pawl, when thelever is moved to the safe position, to cause the pawl to swing in onedirection to disengage it from the cam-operated pawl, thereby to breakthe connection between the firing means and the trigger operating means,and to actuate the manually operated pawl, when the lever is moved tothe fire position, to cause the pawl to swing in the opposite directionto reengage the cam-operated pawl. The lever is provided with aspring-pressed plunger arranged to lock it in either of its twopositions, thereby to lock the manually operated pawl in its operativeor inoperative position.

To insure ease and rapidity of movement of the guns and, at the sametime, to afford fine and accurate control at varying speeds, the--illus- 4 trated mount is provided with power driving means, preferablyfluid pressure driving means controlled by a train control valve and anelevation control valve, operated by suitable control grips from acentral station by a gun trainer who is seated between the guns androtates with them in the horizontal plane, and who controls themovements of the guns in all directions, tracks the target, and firesthe guns from the same station. Preferably the mount is also providedwith alternative manual controls which may be used to rotate the guns intrain and elevation in the event of the power failing during operationof the mount, or in the event there is no power available at the site ofinstallation of the mount and, in accordance with a further feature ofthe invention, means 'is also provided whereby the gun training andelevating mechanisms may be easily and quickly disengaged from the powerdriving means and engaged with the manual controls. In manual operation,the gun trainer controls the rotation of the mount with the guns intrain while the gun pointer controls the movement of the guns inelevation.

These and other features of the invention will now be described morefully with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in theappended claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a view partly in right-hand side elevation and partly insection of a gun mount embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the mount;

Fig. 3 is a perspective schematic view of the mount;

Fig. 4 is a detail view showing a cam and part of the mechanismcooperating with the cam to interrupt the firing of the guns inpredetermined positions of train and elevation;

Fig. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view of part of an elevation drivecolumn, illustrating the means for disengaging the gun elevatingmechanism from the power drive and engaging it with the manual controls;

Fig. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the gun training mechanism,showing the means for disengaging this mechanism from the power driveand engaging it with the manual controls;

Fig. 7 is a view partly in left-hand side elevation and partly insection of a portion of the front part of the mount, illustrating moreparticularly the fire interrupting mechanism, this view showing acam-operated pawl and a manually operated pawl engaged with each otherwhen the cam follower is in engagement with a depression of the 'cam;

Fig. 8 is a view of a portion of the .fire interrupting mechanism shownin Fig. 7, this view showing the cam-operated pawl disengaged from themanually operated pawl after the cam follower has engaged "an elevatedportion of the cam;

Fig. '9 is a view substantially similar to that of Fig. 8, this viewshowing the manually operated pawl disengaged from the cam-operatedpaw-l to prevent accidental firing of the guns;

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the upper portion of the gun mount,showing parts of the connection between the firing pedal and the guntriggers;

Fig. 11 is an exploded view of part of the trigger operating mechanism;

Fig. 12 is an exploded view of the parts shown in Figs. 7, 8 andt9;

Fig. 13 is a vertical cross-sectional view of a control post? and or a:valve controlabox mounted thereon and carrying the control grips, thisview illustrating more particularly the centralizing means for:automatically closing the: elevation-and training control valves uponrelease orv the eontrol grips;

Fig... 14: isv a partial cross-sectional: view similar to Fig. 13,. thisview showing parts of tha-eleva tion control valve centering mechanismin the position. which they assume whem the control The illustrated gunmount comprises a base plate 20. (Fig-1) to be fixed tothe decal: of aship or to any other movable. or stationary supporting structure, and arevolving plate 22 secured to a ring 24 which. is rotatable about a ballbearing mounted in a raceway 26. formed around the base plate 20..Mounted to rotate with the plate 22. is av base housing 28, the uppersurface of which constitutes a. platform 30. Extending, up.- wardly fromthe platform 38 are. two spaced standards 32., each of which. supports acradle 34 mounted for swinging movementabout a. horizontal axis on atrunnion. 35' journaled. in the upper end portion of each standard 3-2.Each cradle 3A carries an adapter 3.! which supports a gun G. Secured tothe forward. ends. of the two cradles is a yoke 38' adapted. to support,a

sighting device (not shown) arranged to move with the guns in train andelevation. A gunners chair 39 is mounted between the cradlesupportingstandards 32, the chair being supported on a bracket 49' secured to therear wall of a hollow control post 4'2 mounted on the platform 31). Thechair 39 is adjustable heightwiseas well as forwardly and rearwardly.

Power drive The power means for rotatingthe' mount in train and formoving the guns in elevation may beof any known type; In theconstruction shown, the power means consistsof ailuid pressure drive,the principal elements of which are-shown schematically in Fig. 3;, and.which includes a control valve mechanism generally indicated at 4A; The.controlvalve housing ismounted on a bracket d6: secured to the undersideof theplatform 3.0. below the control post 4 2 (see Fig. 1)-.

The control valve housing provided with inlet and outlet ports whichcommunicatewith the pressure and exhaust: sides, respectively, of asuitable source of pressure fluid? (not. shown). The control. valvemechanism. 44 comprises a train. control valve which. is connected: bytubes 48 and 50. (Figs 3) to the pressure and: exhaust ports of a fluidpressure motor: 52' connected to a train driving mechanism comprising a.shaft -54: connected. to the shaft of the motor: 52;. A worm 56 on theshaft 54 meshes with; a worm gear 58 mounted ona vertical splinect shaft60 journaled in. hearings in the controlpnstLEZand in a worm gearhousing (not shown) mounted upon therevolving base plate 22;. Formed;integral with thelower end: of the worm. gearcshait 60s is a pinion. 62whichmmeshes withwa ring: gear 614i fixed: to the stationary base 28:The control valve mechanism 44- also comprises an elevation control.valve connected by tubes 66 and 68 to the pressure and exhaust ports ofa fluid pres.- sure motor 10 connected to a substantially vertical.elevation drive shaft 12. journaled in bearings in an elevation: drivecolumn 14 (Fig. 1) secured to the platform 3% by bolts 18. A worm I 8von the shaft 12: meshes with a worm gear mounted on a transverse shaft8-2 journaled in hearings in a housing 84' secured to the elevationdrivecolumn 14-; Fast on each end of the shaft 82 is a pinion 86' whichmeshes with an elevation gear segment 88 fixed to each of the guncradles 34.

The train and elevation control valves are actuated to control the flowof pressure fluid to and from the meters: 52 and 10 to operate thetrain. and elevation driving mechanisms, by a pair of control grips 90which are fixed toatransverse. shaft 92 (Fig. 3) journaled in a valvecontrol box 94 mounted on the upper end of an 01T- set portion 95 of thecontrol post 42 and arranged to be swung about a vertical axis tooperate the tra n control valve, through connections to be describedhereinafter, thereby to cause the mount and guns to be rotated in a.horizontal p'ane. The valve control box 94 is provided with a bottomcover plate 95 (Fig. l) which is secured to a flange 8? on the upper endof a downwardly extending hollow shaft 98 journaled in bearings providedin the upper and lower ends of the onset portion 95 of the control post12. Clamped to the lower end of the shaft 93 is a collar I00 (Fig. 3)having a lateral projection Hll connected by a link I92 and a bell crankH14 to the operating rod of the train control valve. Accordingly, whenthe gunner swings the valve control box 94 about a vertical axis, thetrain. control valve will beactuated to permit pressure fluid to flow toand exhaustfrom the train fluid pres sure motor 52 and, through thedriving connections 54', 56,258, 80 and 62, to rotate the mount aroundthe ring gear 64, the direction of such rotation corresponding to thedirection of swinging movement of the valve control box 91!- by thegunner. Rigidly mounted on. the control grip shaft 92 is a block 106(Fig. 3) to which is connected, by a ball and socket joint, the upperend of a rod I08 extending downward through the shaft 98, the lower endof. the rod W8 being connected by a bell crank HD to the operating rodof the elevation control valve. Accordingly, when the gunner swings thecontrol grips 90 about the horizontal axis, the rocking of the gripshaft 92 will cause the elevation control valve to bev actuated, throughthe connections just described, to allow pressure fluid to flow to andexhaust from the elevation fluid pressure motor In, thereby causing theelevation driving mechanism to elevate or depress the guns, dependingupon the direction of swinging movement of the control grips. Combinedmovement of the control grips in the vertical and horizontal planes willcause the guns to be moved simultaneously in train and elevation. Thearrangement is such that the direction and extent of displacement of thecontrol grips from neutral position determine the direction and speed ofmovement of the guns, the control valves being so constructed as topermit low initial speed with the grips substantially near zeroposition, and progressively higher speeds corresponding to increases inthe amount of displacement of the grips from zero position. By thisarrangement-fine and accurate control is assured and the gunner is ableto train and hold the guns on the target without great physicalexertion. The mount and guns will continue to rotate as long as thegrips are held displaced from neutral position, but may be stopped andheld in any desired position of train and/or elevation simply byreleasing the control grips, which will immediately be returned toneutral position, thereby closing the train and/or elevation controlvalve.

To insure that the rotation of the mount and guns in any direction willbe instantly and positively stopped in any desired position, there isprovided a control valve centering mechanism (Figs. 13, 14 and 15),comprising an elevation centering mechanism and a train centeringmechanism, each constructed and arranged to cause the grips, upon beingreleased by the gunner, to return to neutral position, thereby to closethe respective control valves and stop the flow of pressure fluid to themotors l and 52 which drive the elevating and training mechanisms. Asshown in Figs. 13 and 14, the elevation control valve centeringmechanism comprises a substantially vertical V-shaped member H2pivotally mounted in the valve control box 94. l"he member H2 isconnected at its lower end to the bottom of the valve control box 94 bya ball and socket joint H3 arranged to permit the member M2 to yielddownwardly as the control grip shaft 92 is rocked about its axis by theswinging of the control grips to elevate the guns. The upper ends of thearms of the V-shaped member H2 are provided with notches H4 (Fig. 14)arranged to engage the edges N5 of a dovetailed portion IIB of the blockI06 mounted on the control grip shaft 92. A spring H3 is attached at itsupper end to an eyebolt 620 threaded into the block I06 and at its lowerend to a stud I22 mounted in the lower end of the V-shaped member H2.The spring IE9 tends to hold the member 9 2 at all times in its normalposition with the notches II4 in engagement with the edges H5 of theblock 806 (see Fig. 13). However, when the grips 90 are swung about ahorizontal axis to elevate or depress the guns, the rocking movement ofthe block I08 with the control grip shaft 92 will cause the V-shapedmember to swivel about the joint H3 to the right or to the left (Fig.14) relatively to the block it'd, against the action of the spring II 8.Rocking of the block I 06 causes the elevation control valve actuatingrod M8 to be moved upwardly or downwardly, depending upon the directionof swinging movement of the control grips, thereby to actuate theelevation control valve to elevate or depress the guns. Swingingmovement of the control grips in either direction about the horizontalaxis is limited by engagement of the upper surface of the block I06 withan abutment i23 extending downwardly from the under side of the top ofthe valve control box 94 (see Fig. 14). Upon release of the controlgrips by the gunner, the V-shaped member H2 is returned by the springIE8 to its normal position, thereby causing the block I06 to rock withthe grip shaft 92 in the direction to assume its normal position inwhich the edges H5 on the dovetailed portion N6 of the block are inengagement with the notches H4 in the upper ends of the arms of themember H2 (Fig. 13). As a result of the return movement of the block I06 to its normal position, the elevation valve actuating rod 00 isreturned to neutral position and the elevation control valve is closed,

.the interior of the control post 42.

8 thereby stopping the rotation of the guns in elevation.

The train control valve centering mechanism is substantially similar tothe mechanism just described for centering the elevation control valve.This train valve centering mechanism, as illustrated in Figs. 13 and 15,comprises a substantially horizontal V-shaped member I24 yieldinglymounted in the control post 42. One end of the V-shaped member I24 isconnected by a ball and socket joint I26 to a bracket I28 provided inThe 0D- posite ends of the arms of the V-shaped member I24 are providedwith notches similar to the notches I I5 on the arms of the V-shapedmember II2 of the previously described elevation valve centeringmechanism, the notches being arranged to engage the edges I29 (Fig. 15)of a dovetailed portion I30 of a block I32 mounted on the shaft 98.Between the arms of the V-shaped member I24 is mounted a spring I34which is attached at one end to a stud I36 mounted in one end of theV-shaped member and at its opposite end to an eyebolt I31 threaded intothe block I32 and into the shaft 98. The spring I34 tends at all timesto hold the v-shaped member I24 in its normal horizontal position, inwhich the notches on the ends of the arms of the member are engaged bythe edges I29 of the block I32. However, when the gunner moves thecontrol grips about a vertical axis to actuate the train control valveso as to rotate the mount and guns in the horizontal plane, the valvecontrol box 94, the shaft 98, and the block I32 will be rotated as aunit and the V-shaped member I 24 will swivel about the joint I26relatively to the block. I32 against the action of the spring I34, sothat the notch on one of the arms of the member I24 is disengaged fromthe corresponding edge I29 of the block I62. Rotation of the valvecontrol box 94 in either direction is limited by engagement of a pin I38carried by the shaft 98 with either end of an arcuate slot I39 (Fig. 15)formed in the cover plate 96 of the valve control box 94. Upon releaseof the control grips by the gunner. the spring I34 will return theV-shaped member I24 to its normal horizontal position, in which thenotches in the arms of the member are engaged by the edges I29 of theblock I32, as a result of which the valve control box 94 and the shaft98 will be returned to their inoperative positions, thereby closing thetrain control valve to stop the rotation of the mount.

Manual control The illustrated mount is provided with manual controlmeans which may be used in place of the power control means for rotatingthe mount and for elevating or depressing the guns in the event thatpower is not available at the site of installation of the mount or inthe event of failure of the power means during operation of the mount.The manual control means for rotating the mount to train the gunscomprises a pair of hand wheels I40 (Figs. 1 and 3) which are fast on atransverse shaft I42 mounted in sleeves I44 (Fig. 2) extending laterallyfrom a worm gear housing I46 (Fig. 1) mounted on the upper end of thecontrol post 42. A worm I48 (Fig. 3) on the shaft I42 meshes with a wormgear I50 mounted in the housing I46. The worm gear I 50 is fixed to theupper end of a shaft I52 which extends downwardly through the controlpost 42 and into the base housing 28. The lower end-of theshaft I52carries a. gear I54 which enemas meshes with an idler gear I 56 (Figs.1, 3 and 6) mounted on a short vertical shaft I58 supported in a bearingin the lower end of the control post 42. The idler gear I56 is arrangedto engage a gear I66 formed integral with a clutch sleeve I62 slidablymounted on the shaft 66. The clutch sleeve I62 is normally in engagementwith a driving clutch member I 64 fast on the shaft 66, when the mountis power operated, as shown in Figs. 1 and 3, but may be disengagedtherefrom and moved upwardly to bring the gear I66 into drivingengagement with the idler gear I56, thereby to connect the trainmechanism to the manual control means, as shown in Fig. 6.

The means for shifting the clutch sleeve I62 out of engagement with thedriving clutch member I64 comprises ahand lever I66 (Figs. 1 and 6) faston a rockshaft I68 journaled in a side wall of the control post 42. Alsofast on the rockshaft I68 is. a fork I16 the arms of which carry blocksI12 which engage an annular groove I14 formed in the upper end of theclutch sleeve I62. The hand lever I66 is provided with a knob I15mounted on a spring-pressed plunger I16 having a taper pin I11 which isarranged to engage in either of two openings I18 provided in thepreviously mentioned side wall of the control post 42. During poweroperation of the mount, the taper pin I11 of the plunger I16 engages theopen-- ing H8 at the left, as shown in Fig. 1. To rotate the mountmanually, the operator pulls the knob I15 to disengage the taper pin I11from the lefthand opening I18 and moves the hand lever I66 to the right,as shown in Fig. 6, where the taper pin I11 engages the correspondingopening I18. Movement of the hand lever I66 to the right causes therockshaft 168 and the fork I16 to swing in a clockwise direction (Fig6), thereby moving the clutch sleeve I62 upwardly out of engagement withthe driving clutch member I64 and bringing the gear I66 into engagementwith the idler gear I56. With the gears I66, I56 and I54 in drivingengagement with one another, rotation by the operator of the hand wheelsI46 will cause rotation of the shaft 66 and with it rotation of thepinion 62 around the ring gear 64 to rotate the mount in clockwise orcounterclockwise direction, depending upon the direction of rotation ofthe hand wheels.

Manual elevation of the guns is under the control of a. gun pointer whostands upon a platform I86 (Fig. 1) hinged to the rear wall of thehousing 28 and operates a pair of hand wheels I82 fast on a transverseshaft I84 (Figs. 1 and 3) mounted in bearings in a housing I86 securedto the top of the elevation drive column 14 (Fig. 1). Fast on the shaftI84 is a bevel gear I88 (Figs. 3 and which meshes with a bevel gear I96on the upper end of a vertical shaft I92 journaled in a bearing in thebottom of the housing I86. The lower end of the shaft I92 carries a gearI94 which meshes with a gear I96 formed integral with a clutch memberI98 (Fig. 5) mounted on the'upper end of the shaft 12. The clutch memberI98 is arranged to engage a clutch sleeve 266 slidably mounted on theshaft 12 thereby to connect the gun elevating mechanism to the manualcontrol means. For thus bringing the clutch sleeve 266 into engagementwith the clutch member I98, there is provided a clutch shifting handlever 262 which is fast on an eccentric shaft 264 journaled in a bearingin the elevation drive column 14. The hand lever 262 is provided with aknob- 2.65 mounted on a spring-pressed plunger 266 having a taper pin(not shown) which is arranged to engage either of two openings providedin a plate 268 secured to the column 14. The eccentric shaft 264 engagesin a groove formed in a block 2I6 integral with a laterally extendingfork 2I2. The fork 2I2 engages in an annular groove 214 formed in aclutch sleeve 2I6 which is slidably mounted on the shaft 12 and isnormally in engagement with a clutch member 2I8 fast on the shaft 12,when the mount is power operated, as shown in Fig. 1. The fork 2I2 ismounted on the lower end of a vertical rod 226 (Figs. 1 and 5) on theupper end of which is mounted a fork 222 engaging an annular groove 224formed in the clutch sleeve 266. When the clutch shifting hand lever 262is moved from the position shown in full lines in Fig. 3 to theposition'shown in dotted lines, the clutch sleeve 266 is moved upwardlyinto engagement with the clutch. member I98 to connect the shaft 12 tothe manual control means, while, at the same time, the clutch sleeve 2I6is moved upwardly out of engagement with the clutch member 2I8 todisconnect the shaft 12 from the power control means. When, thereafter,the gunner rotates the hand wheels I82 the guns will be swung to elevateor depress the gun barrels, depending upon the direction of rotation ofthe hand wheels.

Trigger operating mechanism The guns are fired from a pedal 226 (Figs.1, 2 and 3) pivoted at 228 to a foot rest 236 secured to a post 232(Fig. 1) mounted for heightwise adiustment in a split sleeve 234 formedintegral with a bracket 236 secured to the front wall of the housing 28,the sleeve being clamped to the post 232 by means of a clamping screw238. The post 232 is provided with a plurality of bores within any oneof which a spring-pressed looking plunger 246 mounted in the sleeve 234is arranged to engage to lock the post in its adjusted position. Toadiust the heightwise position of the foot rest 236 to suit theconvenience of the operator, the clamping screw 238 is slackened toloosen the sleeve 234 and the locking plunger 246 pulled out of the borein the foot rest supporting post 232 with which it is in engagement. Thefoot rest and the post may thereafter be moved bodily up or down untilthe desired heightwise position of the foot rest has been obtained,whereupon the locking plunger 246 is allowed to engage in another borein the post to lock the post in its adjusted position and the sleeve 234is clamped thereto by retightening the clamping screw 238.

, The pedal 226 is actuated against the resistance of a spring 242attached at one end to the foot rest 236 and at its other end to adownwardly extending lug 244 of the pedal 226. The pedal has arearwardly extending arm 246 which is connected by a link 248 to one armof a twoarm lever 256 pivoted at 252 to downwardly projecting lugs 254of the foot rest 236. The other arm of the lever 256 is provided with abifurcated portion 256 to which is connected by means of aspring-pressed locking plunger 258 the lower end of an inclinedadjustable link 266 forming part of the trigger actuating means. Thelink 266 is provided with a plurality of holes corresponding in numberto the number of bores in the previously mentioned foot rest supportingpost 232 (see Fig. 1), and in any one of which the plunger 258 isarranged to engage to lock.

the .link in its adjusted position, the arrangement being such that anyheightwise adjustment of the foot rest 230 must be accompanied by acorresponding adjustment of the link 260 in order to maintainundisturbed the leverage between the foot rest and the link. To effectthis adjustment of the link the locking plunger 253 is pulled out of onehole in the link and inserted in another hole, corresponding to the borein the post 232 in which the locking plunger 240 has been inserted, tolock the link in its adjusted position.

The upper end of the link 26!] is connected to one end of a rocker arm262 (Figs. 1, 3 and 7) pivoted at 264 to a bracket 266 secured to theforward end of the platform 30. The other end of the rocker arm 262 isconnected by a link 268 to one end of a longitudinal rod 210 (Fig. '7)extending into a trigger lock housing 212 secured to the platform 30.The other end of the rod 210 carries a block 214 (Fig. 12) which fits ina slot 216 formed in a slide 218 mounted for longitudinal reciprocatingmovement in a slideway 280 secured to an inner wall of the housing 212.A spring-pressed pawl 282 (Fig. 12) is pivoted at 284 on the slide mentwith a pawl 286 pivoted at 288 on a slide 260 mounted for longitudinalreciprocating movement in the previously mentioned slideway 280, theslide 290 being provided with a slot 292 (Fig. 12) for the reception ofa block 294 mounted on one end of a longitudinally extending rod 296.The other end of the rod 296 (Fig. 7) is threaded intoa clevis 290, towhich is connected one end of a link 300 the other end of which ispivotally connected at 302 to a bifurcated portion of a lever 304 (Figs.1 and 3) rigidly secured to a transverse rockshaft 306 mounted inbearings in the two gun cradle supporting standards 32. Also rigidlysecured to each end of the rockshaft 306 is a rearwardly extending lever308 having a bifurcated portion to which is pivotally connected thelower end of an upwardly extending rod M0, the upper end of which isconnected to one arm of a bell crank 3|2 (Fig. 10) mounted on a pivotstud 3l4 carried by a bracket 3l6 secured to the upper end of each guncradle supporting standard 32. The other arm of the bell crank 3|2 isprovided with a bifurcated portion 3l8 which engages a portion ofreduced diameter 320 of a trunnion center pin 322. A second portion ofreduced diameter 324 of the pin 322 is engaged by the bifurcated portion325 of a lateral projection 32!; of a substantially vertical arm 328 ofa bell crank 330 mounted on a pivot stud 33l carried by a bracket 332secured to each gun cradle 34. The other arm 334 of the bell crank 330is connected by a ball and socket joint 336 to the forward end of alongitudinally extending rod 338 (Fig. 10), the rear end of which isconnected by a ball and socket joint 340 to one arm of a bell crank 342mounted on a stud 344 carried by a bracket 346 secured to the rear endof each cradle 34. The other arm of the bell crank 342 carries at itsforward end a block 348 (Fig. 11) which engages in a groove 349 providedin one side of a slide 35!! mounted for vertical reciprocating movementin a slideway 352 (Fig. 10) formed integral with a bracket 354 securedto each gun adapter 3?. The opposite side of the slide 350 is formedwith a guideway 355 (Fig. 11) which is engaged by a roll 356 mounted ona pin 358 carried by one arm of a trigger bell crank 360 with which eachgun is provided.

From the above description it will be evident that when the firing pedal226 is depressed, the linkage from the pedal to the rod 338 (Figs. 1, 3

278 and is normally in engageand 10) connected to the trigger operatingmechanism of each gun will actuate the rod to move forwardly, therebycausing the bell crank 342 to swing in a counterclockwise direction, asviewed in Fig. 10, and, by reason of the connection between this bellcrank and the slide 350, causing the slide to move downwardly in theslideway 352. Downward movement of the slide 350 will actuate thetrigger bell crank 360, which is similarly connected to the slide, toswing in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 10, to operatethe firing mechanism of the gun. It will be understood that, in theoperation of automatic guns, the firing of the guns will continue aslong as the pedal 226 is held depressed and will cease upon release ofthe pedal.

Fire interrupting mechanism In the operation of remotely controlledautomatic guns mounted on the deck of a ship, for example, for useagainst rapidly moving targets, such as hostile airplanes, it isimportant to guard against the danger of hitting parts of the ship orother friendly objects which might come within the range of fire of theguns, and to accomplish this without requiring any attention on the partof the gunner. In the illustrative embodiment of the present invention,this object is attained by the provision of a fire interruptingmechanism constructed and arranged to interrupt automatically the firingof the guns in predetermined positions of train and elevation byrendering the trigger operating mechanism inoperative until the gunshave been moved past an area designated beforehand as the danger or nofire area. It is to be noted that the fire interrupting mechanism, inaccordance with the invention, is operative irrespective of whether themovements of the guns are controlled by the power means or by the manualcontrols.

Referring to Figs. 3, 4 and 7, this mechanism is shown comprising a camplate 362 secured to the base 56. The cam plate 362 is provided with lowand high portions corresponding to predetermined fire and no fire areas,and is preferably made in a plurality of segments to facilitat-e theremoval of one or more of them for the purpose of substituting othersegmentsv of different shapes to conform to the particular areas whichit may be desired to protect. Cooperating with the cam 362 is a camfollower comprising a cam pin 366 surrounded by a compression spring 366mounted in a bushing 366 provided in a rack slide 3'16 mounted forreciprocating movement radially of the cam plate 362 in a slideway 312formed integral with a bracket 314 secured to the under side of theplatform 30 torotate with the mount in the horizontal plane. The lowerend of the cam pin 564 engages the surface of the cam 362, while itsupper end abuts against the under surface of a plate 316 arranged toyield heightwise when the lower end of the cam pin 363 rides onto a highportion of the cam, thereby to render the trigger operating mechanismin= operative in a manner to be described hereinafter. An upwardlyextending bar 318, formed integral with the plate 316, is connected tothe lower end of la. link 380, the upper end of which is connected by apin 382 to one arm of a bell crank 38 8 mounted on a pivot 336 carriedby the bracket 314. The bell crank 384 is under the action of a spring368 connected at one end to the pin 382 and at its other end to aneyebolt 390 threaded into the bracket 314. The other .arm of the bellcrank 384 is connected by a clevis rack slide 310.

aasasec mlrairodraflmand arclevis'fiflfi toorre armrof a bell damage,the other armor" which is connecterllbya link M0 atoaa clevis 4112comrected at an to slide M15 (Figs. 7 and 12) mounted for verticalmoveinent'in .slideway M118 provided in theiinnerisurfaceof aside walliln of the trigger lock .ihousingxzzlm. The slide :Mli isiiormed withatgnideway #51 2 '(Fig. 12) 'EfOI rthe receptionoi a block 4-14 mounted.on.;a:.pin '416 carried by the pawl 128.6. .The arrangement is suchthat, during the notation of the mount in the horizontal plane, asthelowerrend of the campin 3B4 rides onto an elevated portion of 'thecam362, the plate 31.5,.together with (the bar 318 and the link 380, rodupward, as :a result of which the bell crank 3'24.swingsncountenclockwise about its. pivot 386 (Fig.2?) and the bellcrank398 swings clockwise, thereby moving the link 400' and .the slide 406upward :in the slideway 408. Upward movement of the slide 406 :causesthe pawl 286 to which ibis-connected torswingrin a counterclockwiseadirection about its pivotal connection 288, astshown in Fig. 8, therebyto disengage .it from the :pawl 282. Consequently, depression of thefining peda1'226, *while thezpawls 282 and 28B are disengaged from eachother, will not actuate the gunrtriggersfbecause, while the rod 210connected toithe pawl .282 will be pulled forward, the rod 296 connectedto the pawl 286 will remain stationary until the cam pin 364 .has movedoff the high :portionp'f ithe oam 362 to allow thepawl 286 to swing in aclockwise direction to a position in which it will again the engaged bythe pawl 282 whenthe operator releases the firing pedal to allowthe rod210 to move rearwlardly.

The "fire interrupting means just described serves to render the triggeroperating mechanism inoperative to fire the "guns in predeterminedpositions during themovement of the guns in train. Forsimilarlyrendering the trigger operating mechanism inopenative in predeterminedpositions during the movement of the :guns 1 in elevation, there isprovided, in accordance with the invention, further means associatedwith :the

gunelevating inechamsm and (arranged to cooperate with the :alreadydescribed cam operated means dor interrupting the firing duringmovemento-fthe guns in train. As illustrated in Figs. 1, and '7, themeans. "for automatically inter rup'ting the firing of the guns inpredetermined positionsdur-ing the'movement of the guns in elevationcomprises a gear H8 which meshes with one of elevation 'gelar segm'ents-88 secured to the cradles M. The gear 418 is fixed to one end of ashorttransverse shaft 420 (Fig. '3) jourca led in a housing M2 (Fig. 2)secured to the inner side of one of the gun cradle supporting standards32. The other end of the shaft 420 carries :a bevel gear 424 (Fig. 3)which meshes with a. bevel gear 426 fast on the upper end of adownwardly extending two-part shaft 428 rotatably mounted in bearingsprovided in the housing 42-2 and "in the bracket 314, the two parts ofthe shaft being rigidly connected by a coupling 53G (Figs. 1 and '7).The lower end of the shaft 428 carries a bevel gear 432 which mesheswith a bevel gear #3 1 fixed to one end of a'horizontal shaft 436 theother end of which carries a pinion 438 which meshes with the teeth ofthe The arrangement is such that, as the gun cradles. are rotated toelevate or lower the gun barrels, the 'gear M8 will be rotated by thegearsegment 8B in clockwise or counterclockwise direction, dependingupon the direction of rotation of the gun cradles.

Rotation of the gear 14 are willcause the shaft 42 8 to rotate and,through the'gearing r32, #34, and M38, will cause the rack 376 to bemoved radially of :the cam 362, thereby to: move the cam pin 364 towardand away from. the center of the :cam. So long as the cam in "i esincontact with a depression of the cam the guns will be fired by actuationof the firing pedal 2226. However, :as soon as the cam pin '364 ridesonto a high portion of the cam, the plate 375, bar 1318 and link 388(Fig. '7) will be moved upward against :the resistance of the spring388, thereby causing the pawl .286 to be swung in a direction todisengage it from the pawl 282 in the :manner already explained above,thus breaking the .connection between the pedal 226 and the triggeroperating mechanism.

.TIn addition to the cam-operated means hereinbefore described forautomatically interrupting the firing of the guns in, certainpredetermined positions of the guns during the operation of the mount,there is also provided manually controlled safety means fordisconnecting the firin pe al from the trigger operating mechanism untilthe gurmer lls ready to commence firing, thereby to insure againstaccidental firing of the guns by inadvertent actuation of the firingpedal. As illustrated inl igs. 3 and 16. the safety means includes aspring-pressed plunger 44!! carried by index M2 and provided withaknurled knob i i l. The index finger M2 cooperates with a plate MBsecured to the rear end wall of the control post t2 facing the gunner(see-Fig 1') the plate being provided with two openings corresponding tothe fire and safe positions of the index finger, and in either of whichthe plunger we is arranged to engage when the index finger M2 is movedfrom one position to the other. The index finger 442 forms one arm of abell-crank lever 448 pivotally mounted on the K plate 646. The other arm45!.) (Fig. 16 of the bell-crank lever M8 is provided with a bufurcatedport on to which is pivotally connected a downwardly extending pull rod452 the lower end of which is connected to a bifurcated portion of asubstantially horizontal rocker lever 454 (Figs. 3 and 12) mounted on astud 455 carried by a bracket 1158 secured to the top of the platform 3!The lever 45E is connected to a slide 48!] mounted for verticalreciprocating movement in a slideway 562 formed in the inner surfacepfthe side wall MB of the trigger lock housing 212. the slide 460 isformed with a guideway 454 for the reception of a block 465 (Fig. 12)mounted on 'a' pin 568 carried by a rearwardly extending arm All! of apawl tripping member M2 mounted On the pivot 284 on which is alsomounted the pawl 282, the member 412 being connected to the pawl by aprciection A i extending rearwardly from the pawl and engaging in arecess, provided in the pawl tripping member 4'12. A spring 416 (Fig.'7) is interposed between the pawl 282 and an upwardly extending lug M8of the pawl tripping member 412. Accordingly, when the index finger M2is moved to the safe position, that is, to the right -of Figs. 3 and 16,the bellcrank lever MB will be swung in a clockwise direction and the*rod 452 will be moved downwardly. Downward movement of the rod 452 willcause the slide 4661 to move downwardly in the slideway 452, as shown inFig. 9, thereby causing the pawl tripping member M2 to actuate the pawl282 to swing in a counterclockwise direction to disengageit from thecam-operated pawl 286. As'was explained above, while the pawls 282 and.286 are disengaged from each other, actuation of the firing pedal 226will not operate to fire the guns, since the connection from the firingpedal to the trigger operating mechanism is broken. When it is desiredto fire the guns, the index finger 442 must be moved to the fireposition relatively to the plate M6, whereupon the slide 460 will bemoved upward and cause the pawl 282 to swing in a clockwise directioninto engagement with the pawl 286, the spring tic allowing the pawl 282at this time to yield slightly upward to permit the hooked end of thepawl 286 to slip into locking engagement with the hooked end of the pawl282,

It should be noted that, while the pawls 282 and 2853 may bedisconnected by either the previously described cam operated means orthe manually controlled means, just described, to render operation ofthe firing pedal ineffective to actuate the gun triggers inpredetermined positions of the guns or in all positions thereof, thereengagement of the pawls requires, under certain conditions, thecooperation of both of the said means in order to render operation ofthe firing pedal effective to fire the guns when desired. Thus, forexample, if the pawl 282 has been moved out of operative position bymovement of the index finger M2 to the safe position, the cam operatedmeans cannot cause the pawls to become reengaged until the pawl 282 hasbeen moved to its operative position by movement of the index finger tothe fire position. Conversely, if, while the pawl 282 is in operativeposition, the pawl 286 has been moved out of operative position by thecam operated means to render the firing pedal ineffective to actuate thegun triggers while the guns are moved through certain angles of trainand elevation, the pawls will not be reengaged until the guns have beenmoved into a position in which the pawl 286 will be actuated by the camoperated means to return it to the position in which it will reengagethe pawl 28:2 upon the next depression of the firing pedal. Thisarrangement provides a maximum of safety, insuring that the guns will befired only when necessary and when they are pointed in certainpredetermined positions.

Operation While the operation of the mount will be apparent from theprevious description, it will now be briefly summarized. It is to beunderstood that when the movements of the guns in train and elevationare controlled by the power means, a single operator, known as the guntrainer, seated in the chair 39 between the guns, controls the movementsof the guns in all directions, scanning the target through the sightingdevice mounted between the guns, and fires the guns by actuating thefiring pedal 226. On the other hand, When the movements of the guns areeffected by the manual controls, the gun trainer, without leaving hisstation, rotates the mount to move the guns in train, continuing totrack the target and firing the guns as in the case of power control,while the movements of the guns in elevation will be under the controlof a gun pointer standing on the platform I89 at the rear of the mount.

Assuming the mount to be at rest and the movements of the guns to becontrolled by the power means, the gun trainer turns on the power tostart the motor which drives the pump. He then grasps the control grips9d and rotates them about a vertical axis to rotate the mount and theguns in the horizontal plane, and about a horizontal axis to elevate ordepress the guns. It will be recalled that the direction and extent ofdisplacement of the grips from their neutral position determines thedirection and speed of movement of the guns. Should the gun trainerdesire to stop the rotation of the guns and to hold them in anyposition, it is sufficient for him to release the control grips which,as previously explained, will be automatically returned to their neutralpositions by the spring-actuated centralizing mechanisms associated withthe grips. If there be no power at the site of installation of the mountor if, for any reason, the power fails during the operation of themount, the gun trainer may rotate the guns manually in the horizontalplane by pulling the plunger lit out of the left-hand opening I18 (seeFig. 1) in the control post 42 and moving the hand lever I86 to theright, allowing the plunger to engage in the right-hand opening I '78.Thereby the gun training mechanism will be disconnected from the powermeans and connected to the manual controls, after which the mount may berotated by rotation of the hand wheels Hill. Similarly, to rotate theguns in elevation, the gun pointer will pull the plunger 2% (Fig. 1) outof the righthand opening in the plate 208 and move the hand lever 2il2counterclockwise, allowing the plunger to engage in the left-handopening in the plate. Thereby the gun elevating mechanism will bedisconnected from the power means and connected to the manual controls,after which the guns may be elevated or depressed by rotation of thehand wheels 582.

When the gun trainer is ready to commence firing, he moves the indexfinger M2 (Fig. 3) from safe to "fire position relatively to the plate446 on the control post 42 in order to cause the pawl 282 to engage thepawl 2% (Figs. 3, 7) thereby to establish the operative connectionbetween the firing pedal and the trigger operating mechanism, afterwhich he depresses the firing pedal 226 to actuate the gun triggers. Theguns will continue to be fired as long as the firing pedal is helddepressed or until all the rounds have been fired. However, atpredetermined points during the movements of the guns in either train orelevation, or both, the cam pin 3% will engage an elevation of the cam362 and will cause the pawl 286 to swing in a direction to disengage itfrom the pawl 282, thereby breaking the connection between the firingpedal and the trigger operating mechanism. Thereafter the guns willcontinue to rotate, without firing, until they have been moved past anangle or angles of train or elevation, or both, corresponr'ing to areasdesignated beforehand as no fire or danger zones. After these areas havebeen passed, the cam pin 364 will ride off the elevation of the cam andthe pawl 286 will swing in the reverse direction to a position in which,upon actuation of the firing pedal 226, it will reengage the pawl 282 topermit resumption of the firing. At the end of the action, the guntrainer releases the firing pedal and the control grips (if the powercontrols have been used), the power is shut oil, and the index finger442 moved back to safe position.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a gun mount having a rotatable support, a gun mounted on saidsupport for pivotal movement relative thereto, a trigger on said gun,and manually operated firing means for actuating said trigger, thecombination comprising connections between said firing means and thetrigger including a pair of normally coacting members, automatic meansactuated, in certain predetermined positions of the gun, to causerelative movement between said coacting members so as to render thefiring means ineffective, and means operable at will for causingrelative movement between said coacting members to render the firingmeans ineffective to actuate the trigger in all positions of the gun.

2. In a gun mount having a rotatable support, a. gun pivotally mountedthereon, a trigger on said gun, and an operating treadle for actuatingthe trigger, the combination comprising a first member connected to thetrigger, a second mem ber connected to the operating treadle, saidmembers being normally in mutual engagement to permit actuation of thetrigger, means acting automatically, in predetermined positions of thegun, to move said first member out of engagement with said second memberto prevent firing of the gun in such positions, and means operable atwill to move said second member out of engagement with said first memberto prevent firing of the gun in any position thereof.

3. In a gun mount having a rotatable support, a plurality of gunsmounted on said support for pivotal movement relative thereto, means formoving said guns in train and elevation, a trigger on each gun, andsingle firing means for operating all the triggers simultaneously, thecombination comprising connections between said firing means and thetriggers including a pair of normally coacting members, cam operatedcontrol means connected to one of said coacting members and to the guntraining and elevating means and actuated, in certain predeterminedpositions of the guns, to move said member out of engagement with theother member, means operable at will to move said other coacting memberinto and out of engagement with said first coacting member, to renderoperation of the firing means eiTective or ineffective regardless of thepositions of the guns.

CHARLES J. GROSS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

15 UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 407,487 Maxim July 23, 1889950,576 Paulson Mar. 1, 1910 ,504,394 Sutton et a1. Aug. 12, 19241,651,699 Halsey Dec. 6, 1927 2,142,132 Joyce Jan. 3, 1939 2,189.202Garland Feb, 6, 1940 2,271,445 Tarris et al Jan. 27, 1942 2,349,101Lesnick May 16, 1944 2,378,670 Walle et a1 June 19, 1945 2,397,577Trimbach et a1. Apr. 2, 1946 FOREIGN PATENTS 30 Number Country Date461,824 Great Britain Feb. 25, 1937 783,291 France Apr. 1, 1935 787,298France July 1, 1935

